Secrecy News

Targeting Criminal Aliens, and More from CRS

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U.S. government programs to identify and deport criminal aliens were detailed in an exhaustive report (pdf) from the Congressional Research Service.

The Department of Homeland Security has four programs that deal with criminal aliens, which are discussed in the report.

“While consensus exists on the overarching goal to identify and remove serious criminal aliens, these programs have generated controversy,” CRS said, on grounds that “the programs may have adverse impacts on police-community relations, may result in racial profiling, and may result in the detention of people who have not been convicted of criminal offenses and may not be subject to removal.”

CRS estimated that the number of noncitizens incarcerated in federal and state prisons and local jails – “a subset of all criminal aliens” – was 173,000 in 2009.

The New York Times reported today that DHS “will begin a review on Thursday of all deportation cases before the immigration courts… with the goal of speeding deportations of convicted criminals and halting those of many illegal immigrants with no criminal record.” See “U.S. to Review Cases Seeking Deportations” by Julia Preston, New York Times, November 17.

Some other new Congressional Research Service reports obtained by Secrecy News are linked below (all pdf). Pursuant to congressional policy, CRS has been prohibited from making them directly available to the public.